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Hammocks For Haiti

To all my freinds in the HF community...

As you all know the Haitian community was devastated by an earthquake. We are in contact with a orphanage in Haiti, run by an incredibly giving young lady, Mallery Thurlow. She has e-mailed us in need of hammocks, tarps and mosquito netting. Of course she is swamped with many needs, but she asked us for these things and I happen to know some great folks here who have those items, or know how to make them!!

If you would like to clean out the gear closet, or bust out your thread injector, it would be awesome. Small hammocks are in order for the kids. Mosquitoes are eating people up, and carrying diseases. Mosquito netting is the answer. If you would like to donate fabric, great. We can do the work here.

http://haitifoundation.com/ Mallery's website about the orphanage. She also has an interview on here when she was leaving to return to Haiti, after the earthquake. There's a paypal site there for donations, if you would like. Her website is pre-earthquake, but I'll try to put up some recent pics when I get them.

Getting donated items down to Haiti is going to be handled by me. I will collect any items and send them down. We are working with a airplane pilot to co-ordinate this effort.

Send donated items to:

Global Embrace Missions
P.O. Box 13
Middleville MI 49333

We also made some woven plastic mats from those silly plastic bags you get at the store. We cut them into strips and crochet or knit them into functional sleeping mats. (Here are some pics from the Dominican Republic orphanage, my family has been working with the past 2 years. Haiti and the DR share the same island.) 28.JPG
Before we made these the kids were sleeping on the floor.92.JPG
As you can see, the mats are popular. And we are recycling a product otherwise destined for the landfill. But we could use your help with these also. The mats work great and don't collect bugs and can be washed clean easily.

Thank you HF community,and the mods for this opportunity.
Sincerely, Gargoyle.

I've been thinking about this since the quake. I'm glad you're doing something more than thinking... Obviously this doesn't have to be UL hiking gear. Do you think blue picnic tarps are the best bang for the buck? If so there's not much to do to make a whole kit - cheap fabric into a knotted hammock, some tie outs from the tarp gusset, and an organza bugnet would do the trick, right? What I'm wondering about is suspension. Once again, it wouldn't need to be too lightweight. What would they hang the suspension from? The lack of trees and solid structures might be a problem.

What about some kind of huge tarp that could give a roof for 5 or 6 kids in hammocks? Just thinking out loud (in print).

.. truly to enjoy bodily warmth, some small part of you must be cold, for there is no quality in this world that is not what it is merely by contrast. Nothing exists in itself. If you flatter yourself that you are all over comfortable, and have been so a long time, then you cannot be said to be comfortable any more. - Herman Melville

hammock lifeline

Excellent post Gargoyle sending a little money from England is probably the best one can do here.If I lived closer I'd imagine it being so rewarding helping out there.Those poor children its terrible.

It did cross my mind that in auwful times like this hammocks and tarps aswell as the knowledge of how to best use this gear is literally a life saver.I did think about how useful the hammock concept could be for these poor people.

Good luck with getting this hammock lifeline off the ground oops that was a little pun to end on a positive.

She has e-mailed us in need of hammocks, tarps and mosquito netting. Of course she is swamped with many needs, but she asked us for these things

Last week I half jokingly thought, send some hammocks! Wasn't sure what they would hang them to with all the devastation. But if they are ASKING for hammocks, they must have plenty of places to hang outside the destruction zone.

Other than giving a chunk of change to disaster relief already, Im feeling pretty helpless... This would be a good start...

Just thinking... this could be a wonderful use for $1.50/yard, lightweight, WalMart ripstop, er, Fabric of Unknown Content. For $22 you can grab a 15 yard remnant and make five hammocks. Add suspension and they are ready to hang.

How many of these do you suppose the HF DIYs could turn out in a week?

That's a great idea MacEntyre. I got a WalMart gift card for Christmas but I feel conflicted about shopping there. For this purpose I would, though.

.. truly to enjoy bodily warmth, some small part of you must be cold, for there is no quality in this world that is not what it is merely by contrast. Nothing exists in itself. If you flatter yourself that you are all over comfortable, and have been so a long time, then you cannot be said to be comfortable any more. - Herman Melville

If so there's not much to do to make a whole kit - cheap fabric into a knotted hammock, some tie outs from the tarp gusset, and an organza bugnet would do the trick, right? What I'm wondering about is suspension.
What would they hang the suspension from? The lack of trees and solid structures might be a problem.

What about some kind of huge tarp that could give a roof for 5 or 6 kids in hammocks? Just thinking out loud (in print).

As luck would have it I have a freind from church flying down next week (Feb 2nd) to do some building, etc. He can check on the trees and structure situation. Crazy how things are falling into place....

Big tarps, small tarps, ccf pads, anything you can offer that would be better than sleeping on the ground.

Smaller sized hammocks for little kids will work, so some knotted 40 wide will do. And something for a suspension.

We can't stop at DIY hammocks and tarps though. The netting, mosquito netting is the key. I am so glad this post has gone out; could you include plans for the plastic bag mat?

I worked in an orphanage for a year and a half in Guatemala and hammocks would have worked PERFECTLY. I am really excited to be involved with this project. If the best way for me to help is finances, that is fine just please let me know.